Glass House opens, is more than half full

NEW CANAAN, Conn. — Philip Johnson's iconic Glass House opened to the public this weekend — and if you don't have tickets for this year, forget it.

Most of the 2007 season tour tickets, ranging from $25 to $40, sold out right away, and potential visitors are already seeking spots for the 2008 season. The enthusiasm is considered a testament to the site's cultural importance and to Johnson, winner of his profession's top awards and designer of several of the most notable structures nationwide, including the AT&T Building in New York, the soaring glass Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, Calif., and the 56-story pink-granite Bank of America building in Houston.

Johnson won the prestigious Silver Medal from the Architectural League of New York for the Glass House, yet always considered the transparent cube much more than a professional triumph. It was also his muse, showcase for art and the emotional refuge he shared with his longtime partner, art collector David Whitney.

Johnson died in the Glass House in January 2005 at age 98; the 66-year-old Whitney died five months later of cancer in New York. The National Trust for Historic Preservation acquired the property under a 1986 agreement with Johnson, and both men endowed money for its preservation and operation as a museum.

The tours start at a new visitor center in downtown New Canaan, where a shuttle takes guests for a short ride to the property.

Johnson, a master of "the reveal" long before television makeover shows embraced the concept, lined his property's main walkway with white pines to obscure the view ahead. With a few steps around a curve, the full effect of "the reveal" strikes visitors with their first look at the Glass House.

Approached at an intentional angle, the rectangular home sits surrounded by a natural vista of hills and greenery — a view that Johnson affectionately called his "very expensive wallpaper."

Information

Glass House: www.philipjohnsonglasshouse.org

Containing just the minimal trappings of daily life, only clear panes separate people inside from the scenes of pastoral New England.

Accommodations were made for pragmatism, such as the inclusion of a system to radiate heat from the floor and ceiling. It made the structure livable even in the depths of winter, although even Johnson — whose professional success and family wealth shielded him from money woes — acknowledged the bills were exorbitant.

A few steps away from the Glass House, a 1949 structure known as the Brick House offers in solitude what the transparent cube provides in openness. With silk-covered wall panes to block the light from its circular windows, it was often Johnson's refuge for naps or contemplation.

Guests frequently stayed in the home, where Johnson's love of blending opposites shows in the contrast between the intellectual heft of his book collection and the whimsical purple carpet in the library that houses it.

The 3,778-square-foot Painting Gallery, on the grounds nearby, is built into the side of a hill, and contains works by longtime Johnson friend Frank Stella, an Andy Warhol print of Johnson and other notable pieces.

The nearby Sculpture Gallery, built in 1970 and home to an eclectic collection of art forms and themes, was another favorite contemplation spot for Johnson and Whitney. Today, guests are limited to viewing the expansive interior from a site just inside the entry rather than traversing the series of stairs that jut at 45-degree angles from the walls.

The Glass House, the other buildings and the surroundings will start hosting a lecture series this fall, a fellowship program that launches in 2008 and other events that Johnson and Whitney supported in the name of culture.

The property, which sits behind an avant-garde entrance gate flanked by 20-foot concrete forms inspired by medieval monuments, had a 2003 market value of more than $19 million. The bulk of that value, more than $10 million, comprises the portion that includes the Glass House, Brick House and the sculpture and art galleries, according to town assessment records.